Outward Appearances
by Beautybecks
Summary: An attack on Dr. Jekyll results in Hyde taking control of Jekyll’s body, claiming Dr. Jekyll is dead and only Hyde exists. The League seems to be okay with this and accept it. Only Skinner refuses to. WIP
1. Chapter 1

Title: Outward Appearances

Fandom: LXG

Rating: R

Summary: An attack on Dr. Jekyll results in Hyde taking control of Jekyll's body, claiming Dr. Jekyll is dead and only Hyde exists. The League seems to be okay with this and accept it. Only Skinner refuses to.

Warnings: may develop into some mild slash in the future. There will also be graphic descriptions of violence, casualties and graphic talk of sexual crimes in the future too. It's going to be a very dark fic.

Author's Note: I apologise for my portrayal of Skinner's speech in my last fic. I didn't meant to make it that bad, I just got carried away. I'll try to stick to Standard English from now on.

Prologue: The fateful attack 

The battle was still raging, casualties on both sides. The League and Nemo's men were winning, even though they were outnumbered. Hyde's formula had run out hours ago. Jekyll did have more but the League decided it would be more profitable for Dr. Jekyll to take the casualties to the Nautilus and attend to them there. Jekyll gladly agreed, more comfortable with helping and healing as opposed to the hurting fighting in a war brings. Hyde liked the hurting all too much.

Skinner fought better knowing Henry Jekyll was safe. He knew how much guilt Henry felt over the fact Hyde enjoyed killing, but Henry still trusted the League; he let them use Hyde. Skinner sometimes felt that the League abused that trust, not thinking of the pain they caused Henry. But Henry was safe now, and using his skills as a Doctor would help him fell less guilty for Hyde. Happy about this, Skinner could push aside his fears and doubts and concentrate on fighting.

It was quite a bizarre bunch of people the League were fighting this time. Skinner had scoffed when he first heard: military personnel from all countries claiming they must destroy all life on Earth to make way for some extraterrestrial beings who fancied the planet for themselves. Skinner never believed in aliens. Mind you, he also hadn't believed in vampires, (almost) invincible men and Americans before joining the League either. But he was learning how serious this army was. That didn't matter though, because so was he.

Jekyll was onboard the Nautilus, up to his elbows in blood. One man had already died under his care; two others were still critical; five were bad, but out of fatal danger; over a dozen were moderately to mildly injured, unfit to rejoin the battle though. As luck would have it, they weren't needed. The battle was almost won. The opposition was retreating, gaining their own personalities back. They were unwilling to die to destroy the world. Nemo figured that the Aliens' brainwashing technique was fading. He didn't realise that instead of having a weaker control of the masses, the Aliens decided to have absolute power over on man: Subhas Chandra. Unfortunately for Dr. Jekyll, that man was onboard of the Nautilus.

Dr. Jekyll leant over the unconscious man, checking the gash on his forehead. The wound looked nasty, but wasn't really. There was no reason for him to be unconscious.

He wasn't. He was just waiting.

Dr. Jekyll turned around to tend to another one of his patients. He felt a sharp pain pierce his back; he saw the sword that protruded from his stomach. Subhas Chandra withdrew the sword then used his fists to finish off the good Doctor, before sneaking out of the Nautilus, unnoticed.

* * *

Skinner was the first man to enter the Nautilus. He'd left the aftermath of the battle early, so he could check on his best mate. The sight he saw made his heart leap into his mouth. It seemed forever until he was able to shout for help. 

Henry was lying on the floor, a mass of bloody flesh and bruises. His copper-coloured hair was crusted with blood. Blood was pouring from both his stomach and back, even though there was more of his blood outside of him than in. His white shirt, with the arms rolled up, was now soaked with blood.

Skinner knew there was little chance but he checked for a pulse anyway. There wasn't one. He couldn't prevent the tears from leaking out and falling down his invisible face. "Oh Henry." He sobbed.

Skinner felt a bloodstained hand grab his throat and crush it. Skinner should have been in pain, but all he could feel was numb. "Henry!" He tried to choke out, but Henry gave a cruel smirk and tightened his grip.

"Henry isn't home!"


	2. Chapter 2

Title: Prologue part II

Fandom: LXG

Rating: R

Summary: Hyde assumes complete control of the body.

Warnings: may develop into some mild slash in the future. There will also be graphic descriptions of violence, casualties and graphic talk of sexual crimes in the future too. It's going to be a very dark fic.

Disclaimer: I don't own LXG. I just like angst and Jekyll/Hyde seem to attract it as much as … well, Doctor Stephen Maturin. What is it with Doctors, huh?

Prologue part II: another death prevented but another life lost 

Skinner was fighting for breath, fighting for life, but was still in shock at how the hand that crushed his throat looked so much like his friend's. The hand was bruised, bloody and broken yet it was immensely powerful. Even though the man was killing him, Skinner still couldn't bring himself to hurt the body of Doctor Henry Jekyll. Despite the fact it wasn't Henry controlling it.

"Skinner what's the… Henry?" Tom Sawyer entered but stopped in his tracks as he saw what appeared to be Doctor Henry Jekyll, strangling the invisible Rodney Skinner. It took Tom several seconds to acknowledge that the sinister smirk on Henry's face and the sadistic look in his eyes didn't belong to Henry. "Eddy." The cocky boy said.

Normally Edward Hyde would have attacked the smarmy bugger for not giving him the respect he deserved, but he already had a victim in the grip of his hand. He heard Skinner's alcohol-scented breath coming at irregular intervals. He toyed with Skinner, crushing the windpipe so it would allow no air through at all, and then loosening his grip. Hyde controlled how much air Skinner received. He laughed as he had the power over life and death and he was loving it.

"Edward, put him down!" demanded a female voice, who had just entered the room. Hyde laughed but did as she said. Why terrorise Skinner when he could have the lovely Mina Harker as a victim instead? "Are you all right Mister Skinner?" She asked. Skinner nodded, unable to speak. Hyde almost killed Skinner there and then but he showed remarkable constraint.

"He'll live." Sneered Hyde; revelling in how Skinner was still gasping for breath. "I wasn't going to kill him. I was just seeing how long he could go without air." He roared.

"This body is stronger than it looks." The body looked broken but Hyde was still moving towards Mina. "Shame it's so… fragile." Hyde ran a finger over the forehead of his host. It came away dripping with blood. He offered the blood to Mina but she refused. He sucked the blood from his own finger, leering sat Skinner as he did so. Skinner looked away.

"There's no way you could have survived an attack that left your body in THAT state." The blonde American said. "How come you're alive?"

"It isn't MY body. This body and its soul are dead."

"No." the invisible Skinner croaked out.

"I am the only survivor!" screamed Hyde.

"No!" Skinner yelled. Hyde moved towards Skinner so he could tower over him. He knew that the next few words would cause Skinner more pain than half-killing him did.

"The Doctor exists no more: there is only Hyde!"

"It's not true," the tears leaked from his eyes. His voice was thick with fear, denial and anger. Skinner was in agony. And Hyde decided to give one final twist of the knife.

"Doctor Jekyll is dead!"


	3. Chapter 3

Title: Chapter 1: Does anyone care about Doctor Henry Jekyll?

Fandom: LXG

Rating: R

Summary: The League decides what to do about Hyde. Skinner doesn't agree.

Warnings: will develop into some mild slash in the future. There will also be graphic descriptions of violence, casualties and graphic talk of sexual crimes in the future too. It's going to be a very dark fic.

Disclaimer: I don't own LXG. I just like angst and Jekyll/Hyde seem to attract it as much as … well, Doctor Stephen Maturin. Actually, since I've started this chapter I got distracted with writing a Nip/Tuck fanfic which has quite a bit of angst for Doctor Troy. What is it with Doctors, huh?

AN: I'm sorry I wrote the prologue in two parts. After the first part I realised I needed to explain more and also needed to bridge a gap and reach a kind of conclusion before I could move onto the first chapter. oh and because my exposition skills are so poor, feel free to ask me anything if it's not clear and I'll usually explain it in the next chapter. I plan on explaining a lot of things in the next chapter, but not all. I must keep up some sense of mystery, you know?

One final point of interest: the reader has absolutely no idea of the direction the writer will take the fanfic in. I could torture you for longer, but I'm not good at torture (unless the characters are fictional.) Even then I'm bad at that. When I write a deathfic I tend to write a secret ending only I know which gives them a 'get out of death free' card. So I must stress: This is **NOT** a deathfic! Nobody dies! Well… no MAJOR characters, anyway.

I best get on with the chapter now or my author's note will be longer than the chapter. Err…

Chapter One: Does Anyone Care about Doctor Henry Jekyll?

The League was gathered together in The Great Hall onboard the Nautilus. Hyde had been locked in the bedroom of the man whose body he occupied. Crewmembers acted as guards, and had been posted outside the doors of the bedroom. The League thought they could talk freely, unaware that the man of their discussions was watching them. The makeshift guards were still at their posts though, oblivious. Hyde listened, and what he heard put a cruel smirk on Jekyll's face.

"Why does anything have to change?" Tom Sawyer naively asked.

"Edward Hyde is evil!" Skinner insisted, and although he was stating a well-known fact, it was as if the League didn't believe him. Or maybe they didn't care.

"We need him." Sawyer was speaking for the rest of the League, even though he was just a kid, nothing special. But nobody else was objecting. Nobody apart from Rodney Skinner.

"Nemo, are you willing to let that monster roam free onboard your ship?" If that monster had the face of evil he knew Nemo would have said 'no' instantly. But it didn't. It had the face of the kind, gentle-hearted, beautiful Doctor Jekyll.

"There isn't much damage he can do onboard this ship." Mina replied sharply. "If he kills us: he kills himself. We shall watch him of course. And we shall store his formula, only giving it to him when we need his body for missions. We will make sure he can't make any more formula than we allow. He isn't as strong as…"

"I could disagree!" Skinner interrupted, an invisible hand rubbing his invisible neck and wincing at the invisible bruises. He could still clearly feel Henry's grip on his neck. Henry's. Skinner shook away his thoughts, as he had to make sure Hyde couldn't do that to anyone else.

"Where's he going to stay?" asked the elderly Quatermain, who was bored of this conversation and wanted to return to his room to polish his hunting rifle.

"I see no problem with him having the late Doctor Jekyll's room." Mina declared and the group agreed. Skinner didn't though; he felt quite the opposite.

"He isn't Henry!" Skinner shouted. The rest of the League stared at him as if he was mad.

"We know he isn't Henry: Doctor Jekyll is dead." Mina's voice was clam, solid and more than a little patronising. For the second time that night, Skinner learnt how words could hurt him far more than being strangled almost to the point of death could. Skinner shook his head softly, unable to speak.

"Look, Skinner man," Skinner glared at Sawyer. Not that Sawyer could see. "We fight bad guys. It's what we do. Danger comes with the job. Death too. We're just lucky we didn't lose anyone more important."

"What!" Skinner could feel the anger rise in him until it reached boiling point. But he couldn't hurt Sawyer. Wouldn't. That would make him no worse than Hyde. Henry wouldn't want Skinner to stoop that low. So Skinner didn't.

"Calm down, Skinner." Tom looked scared but that still didn't make him think before he spoke. "I just mean, it's Hyde we need. Jekyll was just extra. A nice man but he's not really part of the League. Hyde is."

"And what exactly is it that you bring to the League, Special Agent Tom Sawyer? Huh? You're not very special! Huh, boy?" he knew he shouldn't stoop to petty snide remarks about Tom but Skinner was too frustrated to care. "You're not very secret either. I know all about you. I know who your enemies are and I bet they'd pay me handsomely if I told them what I know."

"Mister Skinner!" That was rich! Sawyer was sullying the good Doctor's name and it was Skinner that Mina was scolding.

"Sorry." Skinner lied. "But he was…"

"Henry is dead, Rodney." Mina used Skinner's first name in an attempt to calm him. It didn't work. "You will have to accept that."

"No I don't! And I'm shocked that you have! We've only got Hyde's word for it and he's not exactly trustworthy!"

"You've seen the state of Jekyll's body. There was no way he could have survived that!" Tom so tactfully pointed out.

"Henry's stronger than you give him credit for. I can't believe you've given up on him already." Skinner felt sick as he realised he was alone.

"We can easily get a new Doctor. Doctor Jekyll is replaceable." Even weary old Quatermain was against Henry. "Hyde isn't. Hyde is unique."

"So is Henry!" Skinner was fighting, pleading but his pleas fell on deaf ears. In desperation he turned to the one person he had previously thought felt the same about the Doctor as he did. "Mina?"

"Henry was a good man." Mina allowed herself to admit that much. "But he wasn't a fighter. And like it or not Mister Skinner, that is our job. Henry was good man but he was plagued with insecurities. Perhaps this is for the best. Perhaps he will find some peace."

"He isn't dead! I'm sure of it." Skinner meant what he said but his voice still wavered.

"Really?" Sawyer looked just above Skinner's leather jacket in an attempt to look Skinner in the eye. "Do you really think he would let Hyde almost kill you if Henry was still in there?" Sawyer's blue eyes were serious. Skinner refused to look at them.

"Maybe he wasn't strong enough." Skinner whispered.

"Jekyll's dead. But that's alright. Hyde still lives." Tom's words angered Skinner but Skinner couldn't fight back. He was out-numbered.

"It is the beast we need. Not the man." Quatermain voiced his opinion.

"The strength of Hyde is an asset to the League." Even Nemo condemned Henry.

"So it is settled." Mina concluded. "Hyde is to stay onboard. We can keep an eye on him here. He shall stay in the late Doctor Jekyll's room. I see no reason that he shouldn't keep Doctor Jekyll's belongings, (apart from the chemistry kit of course. We shall keep that under lock and key along with his formula), at least until we find a next of kin. I don't believe he had any."

"Alright already! Can we go now?" Tom Sawyer had the audacity to voice what most of the League were thinking. Mina gave a nod. Skinner gave a frustrated growl.

"Does anyone care about Henry!" Skinner was upset, disturbed, disappointed; distressed. He received a clear answer to his question though when nobody responded. The room was empty but nobody had noticed the tall man, with copper-coloured hair, who'd watched them through clear blue eyes as they exited.

Skinner stayed in the room though. Thinking. He only moved when he saw, what he thought, was Henry at the doorway. He only glimpsed the man for a second before the silhouette disappeared. Skinner ran to Henry's bedroom. The guards assured him that Hyde had not left. Skinner wanted to see for himself.

Sure enough, the broken body of Henry Jekyll was lying on the bed, sleeping. He looked so peaceful. He looked strikingly familiar to when Skinner had found him earlier and thought he was dead, but the blood had been washed away by now.

Skinner watched Henry's chest as it breathed in and out. He watched as it rose and then fell, grateful when it rose again. The nightshirt was open ever so slightly. Skinner could partly see Henry's chest; the skin was oh-so-white against the bruises and the bloody cuts. Skinner closed his eyes and reminded himself that this was Hyde, not Henry. And that fact hurt Skinner more than he had ever thought possible. He'd been hurting a lot recently. But each wave of pain seemed to be getting stronger. How could he live without Henry?

He reluctantly left the room and staggered to his own.


	4. Chapter 4

Title: Chapter 2: Skinner Drinks Himself into a Stupor

Fandom: LXG

Rating: R, I can't be bothered to individually rate the chapters so I'm just rating the fic as a whole.

Summary: Skinner drinks himself unconscious and has a very odd dream.

Warnings: icky descriptions of injuries.

Disclaimer: I own few things. League of Extraordinary Gentlemen ISN'T one of them

AN: This chapter has a LOT of fuzzy science. Most things medical are wrong and wouldn't be known in the time that this fic is set but… ah, what can you do. Also, I'm not good at continuity when it comes to injuries. I should work on it but usually my fics are a lot shorter and self-contained, this is my first attempt at writing a story that has so many chapters. Sorry about the lack of continuity, I try my best but I suck at it.

Chapter 2: Skinner Drinks Himself into a Stupor

'It wasn't fair! It wasn't right!' Skinner thought whilst lying on his bed, staring at the ceiling. He fumbled around for the nearest liquor bottle and drank from it without even looking at the label. Skinner didn't even care what it was and he was so preoccupied that he couldn't identify the taste. It was strong but his emotions were stronger.

He refused to believe Henry was dead, but what upset him the most was that the others didn't even seem to care! They seemed perfectly happy with the evil monster controlling Jekyll's body. They treated him as part of the League, but considered the death of the good Doctor as 'no great loss'!

But they didn't know Henry like Rodney had done. Rodney felt as though he couldn't survive in a world without the kindness and compassion the Doctor had; or in a world that didn't mourn the loss of such a man.

Skinner took another swig from the now half-empty bottle. He was downing it as if it was water.

What made it even more painful for Skinner, really excruciatingly painful, was that it was Henry's body but not Henry's brain. The brain of a monster inside the body of the most beautiful man Skinner had ever seen. Not the most handsome; yet definitely the most beautiful. An evil mind such as Hyde's polluted and corrupted Henry's body. It wasn't right!

How was it even possible? Hyde's mind had Hyde's body: an overgrown ape. Jekyll's genius had a body to fit that genius. That's the way it was. That's the way it should always be! So why wasn't it?

Perhaps… perhaps the others were right. Henry had died; his mind; his soul; his essence, all gone. Only the broken body lived on and Hyde took control of that, no opposition to challenge him. Hyde didn't feel the pain because it wasn't his body.

No!

Skinner drank his bitter thoughts away. He refused to accept that Henry was dead because it wasn't true! He needed it not to be true but was reluctant to examine that need too closely. All he knew was that it was messed up.

The empty bottle slipped through Skinner's fingers and rolled gently on the floor. The room was spinning and nothing made sense. Skinner thought back to the apparition he saw in the Great Hall. Maybe he was going crazy? But Skinner didn't have time to dwell on it. He wasn't sober enough to think about it and soon fell into an alcohol-induced sleep.

He dreamt of Henry.

* * *

Skinner was in the empty medical bay. Nobody was in there except for Skinner. And an unconscious Henry lying in a broken and bloody mess on the floor, just as Skinner had found the real Henry, after the battle. Skinner automatically did as he had done before: he ran over, then dropped to his knees next to the body and felt for a pulse.

This time… there was one.

It very weak, very faint, but it WAS there. Henry was alive, but not breathing. So Skinner gave him his breath, he'd seen Henry do it before. He tilted Henry's head back slightly and opened the mouth before pressing his mouth against it and passed his breath on. Skinner closed his eyes, trying to think about anything except for how Henry's lips felt against his own. He pumped Henry's chest, pumping the blood around Henry's body, pumping the limited oxygen. He repeated this procedure for what seemed like hours, refusing to give up. In the end it worked and Henry started breathing on his own.

Henry was breathing, but he still wasn't conscious.

Perhaps it was better that way. Henry wouldn't feel the pain as Skinner fixed up the injuries as best he could. It would take quite a while; there were a lot of injuries.

Henry's body was full of holes, only held together by bruised flesh. Bones were broken and blood was everywhere. Skinner stripped the body of its outer garments so he could have access and, somehow, moved the limp body to the operating table. The dry sawdust on the floor didn't stay dry for long but it did serve its purpose and prevented Skinner from slipping.

Having mopped up the blood on Henry's body, Skinner could clearly see what needed to be sewn up. The main priority was to sew up the hole in the Doctor's stomach and back, where the sword had skewered him. Skinner did this swiftly and well as he had seen the good Doctor do so many times before. Thankfully, no internal organs were pierced and Skinner was fairly certain all internal bleeds Henry might have had were gone.

Happy with his work on sewing up the hole in Henry's middle, Skinner fixed the tear in his cheek that was so deep you could see into Henry's mouth even when that mouth was closed. He also patched up the gash on Henry's forehead, which had refused to stop bleeding otherwise.

Skinner stepped back to reflect on his handiwork. But there was still more to be done.

"This is going to hurt you more than it hurts me, buddy." Skinner whispered to the still unconscious Doctor Henry Jekyll. He wouldn't stay that way for long.

Doctor Jekyll screamed loudly in agony as Skinner twisted his foot almost 45 degrees to where it should be, tears running down the faces of both men as the Doctor soon passed out from pain and blood-loss.

Skinner worked in peace as he reset bones in the Doctor's legs and arms, before plastering a cast over them so if Henry did wake he couldn't move, or break them again. He also had put both of Henry's hands in a solid cast so the bones would heal straight. As well as that, he had removed several bone fragments and a part of a broken rib that threatened to puncture Henry's heart or lungs. To top it off, Skinner smothered Henry in ointment to reduce the swelling and pain. Skinner had fixed him up as best as he could.

Now all he could do was wait.

Skinner waited patiently, a stalwart vigil. He waited for hours, watching for any sign that Henry might gain consciousness anytime soon. He refused to sleep until he knew that Henry would recover. But he couldn't help daydreaming, trying not to think about Henry and failing. He was so lost in his daydream that he jumped when he actually heard Henry's voice, as soft and as weak as it was.

"Mister… Skinner?" Henry faintly asked. And the world melted away.

* * *

Rodney Skinner woke to find that he was in his own room, not the infirmary. An empty bottle of whiskey on the floor with a throbbing pain in his head to accompany it. He didn't want to remember. He couldn't forget. It was getting harder and harder to separate dreams from reality, what he wanted to be true with what actually was.

Skinner made as if to drag his hands over his face but stopped short. There was blood on his hands.


	5. Chapter 5

Title: Chapter 3: Blood in the Water

Fandom: LXG

Summary: Poor Skinner: when it rains, it pours. Blood apparently.

Word Count: Just under 500 words.

Rating: M

Warnings: graphic descriptions of murder and sexual assault.

Disclaimer: I have no claim whatsoever.

AN: sorry for the long delay. I've got tonnes of schoolwork and I'm writing for over six different fandoms. There's a reason I tend to do one-off fics. Plenty off reasons actually. I apologise and I doubt it was worth the wait but here goes.

**Blood in the Water**

Skinner cleaned up carefully; watching as the water turned blood red before vanishing down the drain, ready to be emptied into the sea when the time was right. Soon he was as clean as a whistle, but still rather disconcerted, as he couldn't remember how the blood got on his hands.

There was no one he could talk to about it either. Well, perhaps Mina but she's no doubt busy with the blonde American. A rather odd coupling but they seem to enjoy the flirting and the fighting, she's could eat him for breakfast but she's being gentle, it actually seems to be going along smoothly for them two. Huh, go figure. But that's not what Skinner's supposed to be pondering.

God, he misses Henry!

Henry would believe him; believe IN him but Skinner breaks off that line of thought as the tears threaten to spill and the knot in his throat almost chokes him. Yet it's hard not to think about him and it's a shock to Skinner to realise how much his world revolved around that one man. He fights to forget his dream yet fights to remember it too.

It comes to him in snippets; snatches; glimpses. Henry's broken body, badly beaten and yet the heart was still beating. Henry was still breathing. He was still alive. Of course, this was just a dream but it felt so real. And Skinner wasn't ready to believe Henry was truly gone forever.

This would be so much easier if he wasn't so tired, if he wasn't still reeling, wasn't still mourning. Off course, he's not really mourning because it's hard to mourn when you're still in denial. And it's also hard to be in denial because Henry's not really dead. Mind you, that's practically what denial is.

Skinner thanks his lucky stars when Tom runs in, states there's an emergency meeting, then rushes off. Skinner throws on his leather jacket and follows him, grateful for something to stop the same thoughts spinning around in his head but reforming to form a conclusion. He's not grateful for long.

"There's trouble in London."

"We just got the transmission a few minutes ago."

"What kind of trouble?"

"A murderer."

"A brutal murderer! 3 prostitutes he killed in one night, raping them before and after he'd killed them. Shredding their breasts as he fucks them from the front; then chokes them and slits their throat whilst fucking them from behind. And the police don't have a clue who it is. Vanished into thin air. No trace of him."

"Are we going to London then?" Skinner asks, cockily stressing his cockney accent and forcing himself to act normal. He can still remember the blood on his hands.


End file.
